automobiles-fuel efficiencyS. Korea to cut margin of error of vehicles' fuel economy to minus 3 pctSEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Tuesday that it will cut the margin of error of vehicles' fuel efficiency to minus 3 percent next year and slap stiffer penalties on carmakers for violations.

The move comes as South Korean car owners have long complained about a wide gap between the fuel efficiency claimed by automakers and their actual efficiency.

Currently, carmakers are allowed to mark their own fuel efficiency ratings within a margin of error of minus 5 percent. But the allowed margin of error will be reduced to minus 3 percent beginning next year, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, without giving a specific time frame.

The move will cut the fuel economy of the Sonata, a popular mid-size sedan of Hyundai Motor Co., to 11.4 kilometers per liter, from the current 11.9 kilometers per liter, according to the ministry.

The ministry said it will raise fines on carmakers for violations up to 1 billion won (US$908,000), from 5 million won.

The ministry also said it will make public the result of tests on vehicles' efficiency ratings as well as the names of vehicles and their makers.

"The measure is meant to protect consumer interest," an official handling the issue at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said. He asked not to be identified, citing policy.

The latest move comes months after South Korea's two major carmakers were sued by U.S. consumers who say they were misled by the carmakers' inflated fuel economy ratings.

In November, Hyundai Motor and its smaller sister carmaker Kia Motors Corp. said procedural errors at testing operations were to blame for inaccurate fuel economy ratings for about 900,000 cars sold in the United States between 2010 and 2012.

Hyundai and Kia, which together form the world's fifth-largest automaker, have yet to settle the case.